Three Lady Flames Garner Tennis Honors

Nadia Solomon-Burgess was one of three Lady Flames selected to the 2009 Big South singles all-conference team

Liberty Lady Flames Hannah Fick, Jordan Jenkins and Nadia Solomon-Burgess each received Big South all-conference women's tennis accolades, as the conference announced its honors, Wednesday night at the women's tennis awards banquet held at McBryde Hall on the campus of Winthrop University.

The trio of Lady Flames each was named all-conference in singles by the league's head coaches. Jenkins and Fick also were selected all-conference in doubles. Jenkins also earned mention on the all-academic team.

Jenkins was named to the all-conference singles team for the second straight year. The sophomore, who earned the 2008 Big South Player of the Year and Rookie of the Year honors, posted a 12-6 overall record and a 5-2 conference mark in 2009 at the No. 1 spot in the Liberty line up. The Sarasota, Fla., native enters the 2009 Big South Women's Tennis Championship, Thursday, having won nine out of her last 10 matches. In addition, the sophomore was recognized for her academic efforts by being selected to the conference's all-academic team.

Fick, a sophomore, garners her first all-conference singles all-conference honor. The Hamilton, New Zealand native has run off 13 consecutive singles victories to enter Thursday's first round Big South Championship match with Gardner-Webb with a 14-4 singles record. Her victory total ties her with teammate Solomon-Burgess for the team lead in singles wins this season. In addition, Fick was recognized as the Big South Champion for Flight No. 4 singles.

Solomon-Burgess was selected singles all-conference in her first year with the Lady Flames. The sophomore enters the week, having been in the Liberty singles line up in every match this spring. The Cape Town, South Africa native has recorded a 14-6 overall record this season and a 5-2 mark in conference play. Her win total is tied with Fick for the most singles victories by a Liberty player this season.

As a pairing, Jenkins and Fick also were tabbed all-conference in doubles. As Liberty's No. 1 pairing, the combination finished the regular season with a 10-1 record. The duo were unbeaten through their first nine matches together, before dropping a contest. It is the second year Jenkins has been named to the all-conference doubles team.

Charleston Southern freshman Olga Makhova was named the 2009 Big South Women's Tennis Player of the Year, while UNC Asheville head coach Lise Gregory was recognized by her coaching peers as the 2009 Coach of the Year. Makhova also was selected the conference's Freshman of the Year. Winthrop's Patricia Coimbra was voted the Scholar-Athlete of the Year for the second consecutive year by the Big South's sports information.

The awards banquest serves as the kickoff for the 2009 Women's Tennis Championship. The tournament gets underway Thursday with three matches at the Memorial Courts, starting at 9 a.m. The No. 2 seed Liberty Lady Flames, the winningest team in school history, face the No. 7 seed Gardner-Webb Bulldogs in the second match of the day at Noon.